Matteo Ruggeri joined Aston Villa from Atletico Madrid in the summer. After only a few months in Birmingham, talk about a possible exit has emerged.
The left-back played regularly in the Champions League for the Spanish side, doing the same for Atalanta in the past. He notched up three assists in La Liga last season, featuring 26 times for Diego Simeone’s side in that competition.
At Aston Villa though, things have been slow so far. He’s played full 90 minutes just once in the campaign and that came in the most recent league outing against Tottenham.
Fiorentina interested
Journalist Angelo Giorgetti wrote a column for FirenzeViola this week, taking note of Fiorentina’s business in the summer and what they can do in January.
He reports that La Viola could look to sign a left-back in the winter, even if the injured Fabiano Parisi returns. Victor Valdepenas joined from Real Madrid in the summer but the club believe they don’t have an able and fit back-up.
This is making them consider a move for the Aston Villa man, who was also a target in the summer.
Fiorentina are alert to how he hasn’t exactly been a regular at Villa Park so far. They could take advantage of this and hand Ruggeri regular game time in Florence.
The report also indicates that the player could’ve been offered to Fiorentina too, which is somehow leading to optimism that a deal can be possible.
| Matteo Ruggeri — club statistics | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27 so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Atalanta | Atlético Madrid | Aston Villa |
| Appearances | 38 | 47 | 4 |
| Starts | 24 | 39 | 2 |
| Total minutes played | 2,190 | 3,485 | 203 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Assists | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| Yellow cards | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Our take: Unlikely deal floated
People around the 24-year-old could be behind this but an Aston Villa exit looks quite premature. Besides, it does look like Ruggeri will get more game time in the next few weeks. The win over Tottenham was a sign of how Unai Emery is starting to trust the player.
It is normal for a player to take time to settle into a new country. That has probably played a role in Ruggeri not playing regularly immediately.
That should soon change and quieten the noise in Italy.
